Professional Learning Options with CCR Workshops

The Five Access Points For Comprehending Complex Texts

Emphasizing student learning versus task completion, this workshop demonstrates how a quality instructional model increases student learning and rigor in the classroom. Using the 5 access points for accessing complex texts, outlined in Rigorous Reading, educators will apply the Gradual Release of Responsibility (GRR) framework to their instructional practice. The workshop will also highlight in-depth use of the GRR model with focus lessons (modeling), guided instruction (scaffolding), collaborative learning (productive group work), and independent learning (homework, spiral review, extension).

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Examine 5 access points and how they relate to quality reading instruction
• Learn the Gradual Release of Responsibility (GRR) Instructional Model
• Understand the three components of text complexity—qualitative, quantitative and matching readers with texts and tasks—and learn to choose appropriate complex texts for their students.

Selecting & Teaching Complex Texts Across Disciplines

Literacy is important across all disciplines. This workshop provides whole schools or districts the steps necessary to prepare students to read complex texts across disciplines and grade levels. Educators K-12 will learn how to select appropriate complex texts and craft purposeful instruction that results in all students becoming literate across grades and subjects—without losing the veracity of their disciplines.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Determine the elements of a text that constitute complexity
• Learn how to assess the qualitative and quantitative features of a text
• Discover the importance of reader and task considerations in the selection of complex text
• Explore a variety of teacher-led, peer-led, and independent tasks that focus on teaching complex text and guiding students’ learning from those texts.
• Learn how to gradually release responsibility to students and help them become independent readers

Rigorous Reading—Establishing Purpose

Purpose is the driving force for effective lesson planning. With a clear, compelling relevant purpose, students are ready for focus on the learning at hand. This workshop will guide participants in using standards to craft purpose statements (learning intentions) to align objectives, activities, and students’ learning progression.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will learn to:

• Differentiate between content, language, and social purposes
• Create purpose statements for content, language, and social learning
• Effectively communicate the purpose statement to the students
• Utilize “I can” statements and other success criteria so that students and their teacher can monitor progress towards goals

Rigorous Reading—Teacher Modeling

Teachers can model for students a variety of activities and behaviors from how to interact with peers to how to write an essay.  At the core, modeling is a time when you highlight areas that you predict will be difficult for students, and show them how you resolve comprehension problems. This workshop will explain 5 types or purposes for modeling, demonstrating, and thinking aloud, along with methods for effective modeling. In doing so, you will learn to model the habits of an active reader when confronted with challenging text.  

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Define modeling  thinking aloud and understand the 5 purposes /types of  modeling
• Identify a modeling approach for each of the five
• Utilize purpose to gain student participation
• Examine the use of student think-alouds

Close Reading Instruction

While close or analytical reading is not a new instructional routine, it is important to implement close reading with texts that are worthy and complex enough to warrant re-reading and detailed investigation. This workshop will demonstrate close reading activities while introducing text dependent questions, annotations, and after-reading tasks, as well as the importance and how-to's of scaffolded reading instruction.  

Learning Outcomes

Participants will learn:

• How close and scaffolded reading work together improve comprehension and foster independence
• How to lead a close reading lesson, including scaffolded reading instruction as needed and guiding students to read more deeply through the use of text-dependent questions that foster critical thinking

Scaffolded/Guided Reading

In scaffolded reading instruction, small groups of students with similar learning needs are grouped together for a short time to receive specific instruction from the teacher using text that will require instruction and support. This workshop will examine key elements of scaffolded reading and cover in depth the practices and principles that guide effective scaffolded reading instruction.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Learn the differences between scaffolded reading and  close reading
• Understand the principles and practices of scaffolded reading
• Identify and implement elements of scaffolded reading

Collaborative Conversations Across Disciplines

Increasing the amount of time students talk using academic language has been a priority for decades. Speaking and listening are keys to developing literacy and disciplinary knowledge and skills. Furthermore, collaborative conversations are a critical part of the close reading process. This workshop will assist participants in understanding the links between speaking, listening, and social-emotional learning through collaborative conversations and presentations of knowledge and ideas. Highlights will include ways to facilitate more focused, purposeful, collaborative conversations between students, and methods for fostering discourse.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will learn to:

• Build structures for collaborative learning
• Set goals for basic and productive group work
• Increase student access to complex texts through student interaction
• Examine a 20-day plan for developing their students’ capacity for collaborative learning

Formative Assessment & Demonstrating Learning

Teachers routinely check for understanding during the learning process, but there is a need to move beyond gathering data. The formative assessment process is used to respond in meaningful ways and plan for subsequent instruction. In addition, formative assessment should be tied to student goal setting so they can monitor their own learning. Accessing complex texts also requires that students do something after reading.  When students are not required to use information from the text in subsequent tasks, they forget what they’ve read, or worse, they learn that class reading isn’t important. This workshop will highlight how accessing complex text requires formative assessment—and what to do after the close reading is complete. 

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Examine the influence of feedback on students accessing complex texts
• Understand the value of formative assessments in accessing complex texts
• Learn to use formative assessments to respond in meaningful ways and then plan subsequent instruction
• Review ready-to-use strategies
• Review text-dependent tasks that demonstrate student understanding of what they have read

Independent Reading

A guiding principle of most state standards is that students will achieve a level of independence that makes it possible for them to understand increasingly complex text.  After all, our intent is to develop a set of skills in each learner that ultimately can be used outside the presence of a teacher. Students’ ability to engage in independent tasks is fostered through explicit instruction. An important advantage of developing independent learners is that the teacher can use their time to support the efforts of individual students. This workshop will encompass the goals of independent reading, the difference between independent reading and sustained silent reading, how to have effective reading conferences, and other ways students can response to text.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will be able to:

• Identify the goals of independent learning
• Implement the sequence of four elements for conferring with independent readers
• Recognize the difference between SSR and independent reading
• Demonstrate several ways students can respond independent reading

Close Reading and Text Dependent Questions

This is an opportunity to see up-close how text dependent questions relate to close reading instruction—no matter the grade or content area. Together, participants will experience a close reading for themselves and analyze both the instructional moves made by the facilitator and the demands placed upon the adult learners. Next, participants will examine a variety of texts and to learn how to develop their own text-dependent questions of a selected text.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Learn how to choose appropriate complex texts across disciplines, including qualitative and quantitative measures and reader and task considerations
• Understand how to include the key features of close reading lessons into lesson planning
• Master the four levels of text-dependent questioning and how text-dependent questions scaffold students’ thinking
• Understand the critical role of collaborative conversations and peer-mediated learning play in comprehension and deep understanding for struggling readers
• Plan a close reading lesson using text-dependent questions and collaborative discussion

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